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Why You Need a Wallet
A Wallet is a must-have if you are invested in Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies! It goes without saying that your biggest concern is the safety of your coins. In fact, most Bitcoiner’s stomachs churn whenever such news of exchanges getting hacked hits the headlines.
However, it might just turn out that a crypto-burglar could be the least of your worries. Well, believe it or not, since the beginning of Bitcoin there have been countless comical borderline tragic stories of lost Bitcoins. For instance, a guy lost about two thousand coins after his girlfriend accidentally threw away his laptop because of an argument. Another guy accidentally threw away his hard drive with over 7500 Bitcoins losing a whopping 20 million in today’s Bitcoin price.
So it can be terrifying to lose a fortune in Bitcoin by simply being careless, but you can worry less as there are a variety of ways to protect your coins from yourself, an angry girlfriend or the occasional hacker.
What is a Bitcoin Hardware Wallet?
Well, a hardware wallet is simply a physical electronic device designed to store your Bitcoins safely.
Think of the wallet as the interface that connects you to the Bitcoin network. And just like your online bank account allows you to access the regular monetary system with a password, a Bitcoin wallet can only be accessed by anyone who has the private and public keys.
For this reason, hardware wallets are an excellent choice for anyone looking to seriously secure their Bitcoins. The reason is simple, with a hardware wallet being offline; it’s hard for a hacker to get access to your private keys.
For instance, even when a cybercriminal targets your computer, they would not be able to touch your coins since they need the private key stored in your physical hardware wallet to get access. Sounds amazing right?
Now let’s check out two of the best Bitcoin hardware wallets that you will find today.
1. The Trezor Wallet
Praised for its nifty and small compact build, the Trezor hardware wallet is popular in the Bitcoin community thanks to its ability to serve as an offline cold storage that also lets you spend coins on the go.
It’s a great wallet for those that want to keep their private keys offline while being able to sign transactions without necessarily connecting to the internet. It features a limited USB connection that works the same way your mouse works with your PC: the mouse controls the computer but the computer cannot control the mouse.
This one-way connectivity makes it possible for you to use the Trezor to send and receive Bitcoins even on a compromised computer without risking the loss of your Bitcoins. Plus you also get a passphrase protection that you memorize boosting security such that you are the only one accessing the wallet.
Furthermore, just in case you have a gang of mind readers threatening to steal your coins, you can also set up an AI feature that keeps anyone from reading the password memorized in your mind ( just kidding, that feature doesn’t exist, although it wouldn’t be such a bad idea).
2. The Ledger Wallet
Ask any Bitcoin fashionista and they will tell you that the design of the Ledger hardware wallet is sleek and impressive, to say the least. Hailing from a company that is quickly catching up to Trezor –its main competitor, the Ledger Nano S is a reputable Bitcoin hardware wallet.
It features a wide support for altcoins such as Dogecoin, Litecoin, Ehtereum, Zcash, Dash and others making it both affordable and convenient for most cryptocurrency enthusiasts.
Set up with the Ledger is easy, all you need is a secure computer with Chrome installed. For additional security it comes with a PIN and whenever the PIN is entered incorrectly up to three times the Ledger automatically wipes clean.
Terrified by the thought? Well, you shouldn’t be as you can easily set up a recovery seed that will help you retrieve your private keys in case your device gets lost broken or stolen.
